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The best way to learn agility… is to do it. Our

The best way to learn agility… is to do it.

Our intern @avareuter_ running through one of our reaction and change of direction tests using @blazepod as part of the Functional Strength System.

Agility isn’t just about cutting fast—it’s about perception, reaction, and decision-making.
We train that using visual and auditory stimuli to improve real-world responsiveness.

⚡ Athletes need it for performance.
👨‍👩‍👧 Parents and gen pop need it for safety.
Being able to see, process, and react quickly could be the difference between avoiding danger—or running toward someone who needs your help.

Bonus: it’s a killer way to gamify your conditioning and track real progress using reaction time and hit metrics in the BlazePod app.

Want to try our gamified conditioning system?
👉 Follow along and stay tuned—we’re just getting started.

#FunctionalStrengthSystem #FSS #AgilityTraining #ReactionTime #ChangeOfDirection #CognitiveTraining #Blazepod #GamifiedConditioning #TrainSmart #AthleteDevelopment #ParentFitness #GeneralPopulationTraining #OrlandoFitness #SportsPerformance #UnconventionalStrength #movewithpurpose

Week 3 = Power in the Functional Strength System ⚡️

Always a privilege to have one of my off-season athletes back in the house—Terrell, an exceptional athlete and an even better human being.

Fresh off earning his bachelor’s, now working toward his postgraduate degree, Terrell is using these 10 weeks to dial in his movement, build capacity, and prep for a high-performance, healthy final season at UM.

His program blends:
🔹 Internal strength
🔹 External strength
🔹 Velocity-based movements
🔹 Conditioning work

Off-season is the time to load, build mass, and clean up inefficiencies. But for skill athletes like Terrell, I always keep impulse and power development in the mix—because we’re not just building muscle, we’re building output.

Here’s a quick look at a Week 3 session:
➡️ Hip-dominant and press-focused
➡️ Every movement influenced by speed and intent
➡️ All part of a system built around sustainable performance

Can’t wait to see where this offseason takes him.

#FunctionalStrengthSystem #FSS #AthleteTraining #OffseasonProgram #PowerDevelopment #VelocityTraining #HipPower #SportsPerformance #UMAthlete #CollegeFootball #StrengthAndConditioning #OrlandoTraining #TrainLikeAnAthlete #UnconventionalStrength #SpeedStrength #PerformancePrep #AthleteDevelopment

Sundays are for Spine, Shoulders & Scapula… Or a

Sundays are for Spine, Shoulders & Scapula…
Or as we like to call it: Torso Day.

Today’s focus: building joint control, expressing full ROM, and challenging resilience through progressive loading and intentional movement.

We started with deep joint work using CARS in various positions—culminating in a 100lb sandbag spine CAR.
Not the cleanest, but definitely the heaviest I’ve ever done for true spinal articulation.

Then we got after it with some external loading work:
1️⃣ Reverse Hyper Back Extensions + Hip Extension Isometric
2️⃣ Zercher Jefferson Curls
3️⃣ EQI KB Overhead Press
4️⃣ Cable Rear Delt Flys + Overhead Squeeze (hello scapulohumeral rhythm)
5️⃣ Pull-ups
6️⃣ High-rep barbell spinal flexion with chains to finish it off

This session wasn’t about chasing PRs—it was about developing a resilient, responsive upper quadrant through deliberate stress and controlled challenge.

🧠 Have you ever thought about training your spine, scapula, and shoulders with this level of intention?
Not sure where to start?

👇 Drop a comment or DM—I’ll point you in the right direction.

#SpineTraining #ScapularControl #ShoulderStability #TorsoDay #CARS #MobilityTraining #UnconventionalStrength #JointHealth #MovementQuality #StrengthAndControl #OrlandoFitness #ZercherCurls #ReverseHypers #SandbagTraining #Pullups #TrainSmart #SpinalStrength #frc

Monday Moves: TRX Suspended Lunge 🔁 Flawlessly

Monday Moves: TRX Suspended Lunge 🔁

Flawlessly demoed by our intern Ava, the TRX Suspended Lunge is a staple in our programs—for athletes, adults, and everyone in between.

Stability is built from the ground up, and this movement challenges the entire kinetic chain:
⚙️ Mid-foot control
⚙️ Hip and trunk stability
⚙️ Unilateral strength
⚙️ Neuromuscular coordination

The further you step from the anchor point, the greater the pendulum effect, pulling you into instability and demanding total-body control through the full range of motion.

This isn’t a starting point—it’s a progression. Once mastered, we can:
✅ Load it
✅ Slow it down or add velocity
✅ Elevate the front foot
✅ Add rotation or even plyometric elements

If you’ve never tried a TRX Suspended Lunge, prepare for a humbling (and enlightening) experience.

🎓 Bonus shoutout to Ava, part of our new internship partnership with UCF, here for 10 weeks learning to coach, program, and apply science to real-world training.

#TRXTraining #SuspendedLunge #FunctionalStrengthSystem #UnilateralTraining #StabilityTraining #OrlandoFitness #TRXMovement #InternshipProgram #UCFInterns #StrengthAndConditioning #MondayMoves #MovementMatters #FunctionalStrength #TrainSmart #CoachDevelopment #FSS #unconventionalstrength

Heavy Kettlebell Squat Circuit 🏋️‍♂️⚔

Broke out the heavy kettlebell cleans to celebrate

Broke out the heavy kettlebell cleans to celebrate…
🎉 Our first podcast episode is LIVE! 🎉

@fellowship_of_the_gains has officially launched, and Episode 1 is out now on:
📺 YouTube
🍎 Apple Podcasts
🎧 Spotify

We’re blending 30+ years of fitness industry experience with our lifelong nerddom (yes, LOTR fans unite 🧝‍♂️) to bring you a podcast that’s as strong as it is strange.

Expect real talk on training, recovery, programming, and probably a few hot takes on orcs, elves, and deadlifts.

Hit the link in @fellowship_of_the_gains bio to watch the full episode and join the growing fellowship of lifters, learners, and nerds alike.

#FellowshipOfTheGains #KettlebellCleans #FitnessPodcast #StrengthAndConditioning #LOTRFitness #TrainSmart #OrlandoFitness #FunctionalStrength #DeadliftsAndDestiny #MordorMindset #NerdsWhoLift #FirstEpisode #PodcastDrop #FOTG #YouTubePodcast #SpotifyPodcast #applepodcasts

Knees & Ankles: Bipedal Prerequisites Before you

Knees & Ankles: Bipedal Prerequisites

Before you can own knee flexion or ankle dorsiflexion, you need workspace—that means joint capsular space and usable tissue length. Without that, no amount of split squats or wide-stance lunges will restore authentic mobility.

Mobility = articular control, and control is only possible once the joint has access to space.

The incline couch stretch PAILS and RAILS are a great tool to expose limitations in deep knee flexion. Follow that up with isometrics, and controlled eccentrics to teach the nervous system how to own that new range. Don’t forget the knee joint rotates and learn to load that rotation with some loaded CARs.

Knee and ankle function are tightly connected. Limited ankle dorsiflexion creates compensations upstream—often at the knee. Train the kinetic chain, not just isolated joints.

If you want long-term joint health, build joint prerequisites first. Then layer strength on top of control.

The stronger the foundation you build on the less cracks in the long term.

Hashtags:
#FRC #ControlledArticularRotations #PAILsRAILs #FunctionalRangeConditioning #KneeMobility #AnkleMobility #JointHealth #MovementLongevity #ArticularHealth #CapsularSpace #MobilityTraining #EccentricStrength #FRCMobility #KneesOverToes #JointByJoint #EndRangeControl

When that music hits, you know two things: 1️⃣

When that music hits, you know two things:
1️⃣ The Uruk-hai are coming—stand ready.
2️⃣ We. Started. A. Podcast. ⚔️🎙️

@the.shirtlessdude and I took our 30+ years of combined fitness industry experience and decades of nerddom to create something we’re pumped to share:

👉 @fellowship_of_the_gains 👈
A podcast where strength meets stories, science meets swords, and we’re not afraid to ask the real questions like…
How much could Frodo deadlift?

Expect training insights, research breakdowns, interviews, and a whole lot of Tolkien references—because fitness doesn’t have to be boring.

➡️ Head over. Like. Subscribe. And join the fellowship.
The gains are coming.

#FellowshipOfTheGains #SteelMaceTraining #LOTRFitness #NerdsWhoLift #StrengthAndConditioning #FunctionalStrength #OrlandoFitness #FOTG #FitnessPodcast #UrukHaiMode #MiddleEarthMuscle #TrainLikeAHero #PodcastLaunch #MaceFlow

Heavy Leg Day ✅ & Big Announcement 🎙️⚔️

Heavy Leg Day ✅ & Big Announcement 🎙️⚔️

First off:
Lift heavy. In different positions. Through full ranges of motion.
Your joints, muscles, and connective tissue will thank you—eventually.

Second:
WE STARTED A PODCAST.
My dude @the.shirtlessdude and I discovered that beyond our love for strength, movement, and health… we’re also complete nerds.

So naturally: Fellowship of the Gains was born.
Yes, that is Lord of the Rings music in the background.
Follow us at @fellowship_of_the_gains and get ready—we’ve got 4 episodes dropping over the next few weeks.

We’re talking training, lifestyle, recovery, gear… and probably some Middle-Earth metaphors along the way.

TL;DR:
• Lift heavy stuff.
• Subscribe to the new podcast.
• Be part of the Fellowship.

#FellowshipOfTheGains #LiftHeavy #FunctionalStrengthSystem #StrengthTraining #OrlandoFitness #LOTRFitness #StrengthAndConditioning #PowerblockDumbbells #LegDayVibes #FOTG #PodcastLaunch #MovementNerds #OrlandoGym #trainlikeahero

Training through the hard days. Injury. Stress. Fa

Training through the hard days.
Injury. Stress. Fatigue. Life doesn’t pause—and neither does your health.

At Unconventional Strength, we coach you through it, not around it. Today’s session featured hinge variations, targeted hip work, upper body pulls, and neck training—because when your body’s under stress, smart movement is medicine.

When you’re at your worst, you need coaching at its best.
The lens may shift—load, volume, intensity, intention—but the work remains.
We anchor our programming in objective progress, not just how you feel in the moment.

Progress isn’t linear, and you don’t have to be perfect.
You just need a system that adapts—and a coach that listens.

Still showing up is a win. Let us help guide the rest.
DM to train with us in-person or online.

#FunctionalStrengthSystem #TrainThroughIt #ResilientBody #StressManagement #CoachedRecovery #MovementIsMedicine #StrengthTraining #HingeVariations #HipStrength #NeckTraining #SmartTraining #AdaptDontQuit #UnconventionalStrength #PerformanceUnderPressure #OrlandoFitness #TrainSmart #StrengthInStruggle #JointHealth #FSS

SQUAT SUNDAY Never skip leg day—no matter who yo

SQUAT SUNDAY
Never skip leg day—no matter who you are.
Male. Female. Athlete. Stay-at-home parent. Teacher. Weekend warrior.
It doesn’t matter your background—lower body strength training is essential for musculoskeletal health, injury mitigation, and long-term vitality.

Yes, walking, rucking, and uphill climbs are great…
But they don’t create the same adaptations that progressive resistance training does.

And before you say it:
“My knees hurt.”
“My hip flares up.”
“My back gets tight when I squat.”

I hear it all the time—and here’s the truth:
There isn’t just one way to train your legs.

At Unconventional Strength, we meet you where you are. Maybe your path starts with machines. Maybe it’s isometrics or local tissue work. Maybe it’s supported step-ups or tempo work. The point is—we find the entry point and build from there.

Do most people need to jump into Zercher squats or slider lunges?
No. I’ve been training for over 20 years. Most people start simpler—and that’s not just okay, it’s smart.

If you’re dealing with pain, restriction, or uncertainty—start anyway.
Progress is possible. You just need the right program, the right support, and the courage to begin.

—

#SquatSunday #LegDay #LowerBodyTraining #StrengthTraining #KneePainRelief #HipMobility #BackPainSupport #ProgressiveOverload #FunctionalStrength #UnconventionalStrength #LongevityTraining #OrlandoFitness #SmartStrength #InjuryPrevention #FitnessOver40 #JointHealth #MuscleHealth #TrainSmart #StrengthCoach #MovementIsMedicine

What You See Is Just a Snapshot Instagram only sho

What You See Is Just a Snapshot
Instagram only shows you a second of someone’s workout—not the full story. So before you copy or critique what you see, ask yourself:
• What’s the volume?
• What’s the intensity?
• What’s the goal of each movement?
• What are the rest times?
• How is it progressing week to week?

These questions aren’t just for coaches—they’re critical for anyone who wants real results.

At Unconventional Strength, we don’t just throw together exercises. We build complete strength and conditioning programs—yes, both. Because we all need both:

Strength: From deep stabilizers to superficial movers. Trained through tempo, intensity, and load—always progressing intelligently.
Conditioning: Dialed to improve energy systems from high-intensity anaerobic to aerobic endurance.

Whether you’re in our Orlando studio or training remotely, our programs combine:
• Joint-based training
• Multidirectional movement
• Classic lifts like squats and presses
• Weekly load variation and progression strategies

The cool IG clip you see? That’s just a moment. What’s behind the moment—that’s what creates real progress.

—

#StrengthAndConditioning #FunctionalTraining #AthleticTraining #IntelligentProgression #OrlandoFitness #JointBasedTraining #ConditioningWork #TrainWithPurpose #PerformanceTraining #RemoteCoaching #UnconventionalStrength #SmartProgramming #MultidirectionalMovement #MovementMatters #FitnessOver40 #FitnessCoaching #StrengthCoach #orlandoathletes

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